188 WILLIAM GRIFFITH 



had grasped the morphology of the Cycadean ovule, how faith- 

 fully he delineated the details, and how he sought in progressive 

 development to throw light on the structure. He added to the 

 previously imperfect description of the ovule an accurate account 

 of the pollen chamber, and the proof that pollen grains entered 

 and filled it. Further he followed the germination of the pollen 

 grains, not merely recording the fact that the tubes penetrated 

 the nucellus all around the pollen chamber, but ascertaining 

 in how many days the tubes were put forth. His fullest de^ 

 scription is unfortunately displaced in the Notulae under the 

 heading of Thuja, but it is clear that it refers to the Cycas 

 figured on the same plate as that plant. 



From what has been said of the nature of Griffith's work on 

 the ovules, both of Angiosperms and Gymnosperms, the complete 

 omission of his name in recent works on the two groups that 

 are in constant use is at least noteworthy. 



Griffith was specially interested in the study of Cryptogamic 

 plants. In a letter to Wight he says " I would like to be out 

 with a work on Indian Cryptogamia of higher forms ; so much 

 so that if I see no chance of my succeeding to the Gardens, I 

 intend sending away all my other collections, and devoting 

 myself to this object and general development, which is 

 obviously the keystone of the arch." 



He left Algae and Fungi (with the exception of the Characeae) 

 alone, and it is his work on the Bryophyta and Pteridophyta that 

 concerns us. For information on his views on these plants we 

 are dependent on his paper on Salvinia and Azolla and on the 

 Notulae, put together as I have said from his notes after his 

 death, and not intended for publication in this form. But there 

 is no difficulty in getting a clear grasp of his point of view. 

 This was a mistaken one an attempt to bring into line the 

 reproduction of the gametophyte of Bryophytes, the sporophyte 

 of Vascular Cryptogams, and the flowering plant with its flower 

 and fruit. It is easy to be wise after the event. In these 

 comparisons Griffith belonged to his time with a much wider 

 field of personal observation than most possessed. 



We must bear in mind that at the time when Griffith worked 

 no idea of the sexual and asexual alternating generations in 



